Neither of the adults on board had a kill cord plugged in - which would have cut the engine.

Mum Victoria Milligan lost her leg as she battled to protect her other children. She has told how, recovering in hospital, she began reading books about coping with grief: "One of the books had said, 'when I was ten I lost my brother - but I also lost my mother because she disappeared into her bedroom for the next five years.'

"I remember then making a decision that was not going to happen to them - that I was going to try to be mother I was before.

Cornwall's new air ambulance, the first to be able to fly at night, will be named after her husband and little girl. Close to tears she said: "It's just the most amazing thing to know that they will be flying around Cornwall together, saving people. So, for me, it's a really amazing legacy to leave for them.

"I'm so proud to be able to leave it for the Cornwall Air Ambulance, because they are an amazing charity. And Nick and Emily are saving people."